FOXBORO -- Things were back to normal on the Patriots practice field on Thursday morning. Quarterback Tom Brady, who missed practice on Wednesday after being sent home from the team's facilities with an illness, was present and looked no worse for the wear while warming up with his teammates during the media availability portion of the sweats-and-shells session.

Long snapper Danny Aiken, who also missed Wednesday's workout due to illness, was back on the practice field as well.

Brady missed his scheduled press conference on Wednesday, but is scheduled to speak with the media at 12:45 p.m. Thursday as well as 9:30 a.m. on Friday.

With Brady out on Wednesday, Patriots backup quarterback Ryan Mallett pulled double duty at practice. He got New England's first-team reps behind center, and he also did his best impersonation of Peyton Manning to help the first-team defense prepare for the Broncos offense.

Asked which quarterback he likes emulating more, Mallett answered: “I like both of them, really. Everybody gets to throw it.”

Phil Perry serves as a general reporter for Comcast SportsNet, mainly covering the New England Patriots. Follow Phil on Twitter here.